Stoltenberg will not renew as NATO Secretary General, according to spokesman, given news of a possible expansion

12 Feb. () –

The Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Jens Stoltenberg, does not intend to renew his position again, in the face of German media reports that pointed to a possible expansion given his track record at the head of the military alliance. .

Sources from the ‘Die Welt’ Sunday newspaper pointed out that the NATO member countries had the intention of extending Stoltenberg’s mandate, which in principle ends on September 30 of this year, until April 2024, given his “extraordinary achievements” and to ensure the stability of the institution during the Ukrainian war.

Likewise, the members of the alliance want to give Stoltenberg the opportunity to preside over the summit of the 75th anniversary of the organization in Washington, in April 2024, when he is in a position, always according to the outlet, to address what would be his next destination: the Presidency of the World Bank, when the American David Malpass leaves his position, almost at the same time.

In response, the secretary general’s spokeswoman, Oana Lungescu, has confirmed to the DPA agency that Stoltenberg will not extend his position no matter how much the 30 NATO member states reached “an informal agreement”, as Die Welt explains, in this regard. .

“Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s mandate has been extended three times and he has served for a total of almost nine years,” the spokeswoman told the aforementioned agency on Saturday. “He ends in October of this year and has no intention of requesting another extension of his term,” she added.

NATO allies agreed to extend the term of Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for another year on March 24, 2022, shortly after the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.